Air purifier



July 25, 1950 P. M. PIRCHIO 2,516,340

AIR PURIFIER Filed Feb. 20, 1945 2 Shees-Sheet l INV ENT OR. P454104? M 5201/0.

BY WYWM July 25, 1950 P. M. PIRCHIO 2,516,340

AIR PURIFIER Filed Feb. 20, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTFOR. JZEQMMEAZFfiZMU BY gum/m; mam

ATTOEA/L KS Patented July 25, 1950 UN PATENT OFF-ICE I P FIER' Basque-MM. :Pirchio, Clay ownship, St. Joseph v(lo nrty, Ind assigmor of one-third to George E. -Itohl'bawh' and one-third to Jerome J. Sechowsktl'both of South Bend, Ind. when a m- 2 45. fierial No. 1 81 .9 "Claims.

T s invention re a es to improv m nts n o purifiers. More particularly; it relates to aippuriiiers which are adapted to 'he segl-in air'fiow ys e s o th o ec n o t me Such h air heating systems.

Various attempts have been made to provide i s for ot a r h i g plans- 'lhes e not been successiul or generally acceptedior use n lo p es u e? or e n tivp ow syst s a 1 5" tinguished from forced air new systems. The resistance of conventional mtering ,rnaterial to the flow of air therethrongh and the tendency of filtering mediums to clog progressively as foreign substances are trapped or caught th erei;n have been among the primary reasons -for the failures or previous devices. Another di-fiicu-lty which has been encountered in practical, use is that air conduits diilfer considerably in size and shape, and are frequently subiectto structural deformation, so that a wide range. of sizes and shapes has been necessary. The latter condition has made it necessary to consider the peculiarities of each duct in a system in preparing an in.- stallation therefor, with the result, that filters have had to be custom made in many instances.

The primary object of this invention is to pro vide a device of this character which presents only a small resistance to the-flow of air there.- through.

A further object is to provide a device of this character constructed to fit in openings-or pas-- sages of a wide range-of sizes and shapesfand adapted to compensate tor structural deformities" or irregularities in passagesand openings. I

A further object is to provide a device oi this character with a novel contamer {or purifying material which will shape itself to conformto the shape of a receiving -opening' and which can :be bent to conform with structural obstructions in the opening.

A further object is to provide a device .of this character "having a compressible purifying element and a container constructed to prevent excessive compression thereof.

A further .object is tolprovide a device which will efiectively remove dust, mgpacteria, gases ous products .of combustion. and other objection.- able impurities frame-i I I @ther objects will he ap arent from the d scription, drawings appended claims- 1 coil springs are connec ed to '2 "Inthe drawings:

Fig.1 is a top plan view of one form of my device.

' Fig, 2' is a side view of the device, 1 Fig. 3v is a bottom plan view of the device. Fig, 4 a top plan view of another form of my device.

"Fig. 5 is a side view of the Fig. 4 type of device; Fig. 6 is a bottom plan view of the Fig. 4-t y; pe oi device. I

Referring to the drawings, and particularly to Figs- 1 to 3, the numeral l0 designates a basket, like wire container having a base I l and a frusto conical longitudinal wall which is preferably formed of a plurality of circumferentially spaced curved flaring sections I2 bent up from the :base. The base and side wall sections are preferably formed integrally from Wire mesh material of any suitable type. 'Ixprefer to use soldered wire mesh wherein the-wires are spaced apart in .a range of from aboutone-half inch to two inches. A wire rim member 13. is secured to and connects the upper ends of the side sections 12. Between each .of said side sections the rim is provided with a horizontal radially inwardly sbjent portion IQ of substantially u-shape, as-loe'st shown in-Fig- 1. A top memberv i5 is formed of wire mesh of asize and greater than the spacing between the inner ends of opposite U-shaped rim portions J41. A.

coil spring H isdetaohably hoohed to each .11- shaped rim portion 14 at its outer ,end and is pie-.- tachably hooked to a wire of 1 01 1. a ts inner end and adjacent to the center of aid op- I he norm ll be t le st slight tension d.

The basket or con ainer r ce e afi le o pu i fvms m eicm it. of m tal fi a n s- The fibers are pref rably ve y fin flex n at d steak fil ments, whiehare bent or c led to nt r ece or intertwine a d town a ve l osel p cke messhe lam nts a e resilient and. p erab a thickn ss n th rd i o 2 nch The? a e so l os arran ed ha a ma ereof ree nch s t ins d es not ma ia e tric isio 01 the as a e flisht the thio shhe l ose mes f ackin o the i e mi e ent forming medium it-for wantoi a bet er rite ion... is imm ne evhe remention d pro erties th gh e able ve ses his through t a d 3 permit light to be transmitted therethrough. preformed unit of either type illustrated can be The term loosely packed as used herein with fitted in openings of a wider range of sizes, by reference to the medium l8 means of such low bending them on the job to either smaller or density as not to impair Vision therethrough or larger size, as accommodated by the normal spacmallerially interfere W t p s of light thereing of the side panels and their interconnection through in masses p to three inches y by the inwardly projecting portions of the rim. virtue of the loose arrangement, t e sp of Furthermore, if the basket does not conform to filaments and the fineness of the filamen s, th the shape of the opening, due to some irregularity filler presents a negligible resistance to the flow o to an obstruction in the passage, the basket of air therethrough by convection and is clearly can b t, t fit around the b tructio and distinguishable from materials of the filter type, accommodate such a condition. such as conventional metal, glass or other fibrous ln each embodimenu the-top .panel fits under filters. As illustrativeiz of material which pos andis retained by; the inwalrll off soff'the top sesses these properties, the material commonly rim and in turn confines the purifying media on known as steel wool 01 Ste l Shav s may bexls which it bears. The simplicity of the application used by uniformly expanding the same throughof the top and its removal is readily apparent.

out to reduce its density and increase its volume" The coil springs serve to connect and center the and to extent satisfying the requirements of negtop panel. Howev r. the primary function of ligible resistance to the flow of air therethrollgh .these-;spring sgtoihold the top panel at the level by convection and negligible restriction or iIIlE-z 0vv of the tonnmzin engagement with the rim offpairment of vision therethrough, as hereinabove' :iicsets topreverit excessive compacting of the filamentioned, as compared to the material c0 m-, inentary purifying media in handling and in use. monly supplied to the trade as an abrasive-for Thus,if'tlietoppanel should be pressed downcleaning and scouring purposes. For example, i ward1y,'2the springs resist the pressure, and upon the strands or filamentstb the mass can e spaced release of the pressureiserve to return the top apart in the order of, or an averagedistance. of, panel-toprgpert position 1 g hetween one-eighth inch and one-fourth -inch, ,The filler h variousque properties. ;Ad; measured with respect to the nearest points-of, justments -of s zejand shape of the device ,ina the adjacent strands. The metal filaments: are substantialrangfe are ,no't-interieredwith and do. p rab y a d o provide surface oxidation not afiect its properties nor increasejits resistance of at least a part thereof-for example, by dipping to sair flow to any measurable jor material extent.

in water and drying in air or by heating-in air It .hasgthew-property ci s-catching and retaining until ithe material is discoloredpfor purposes dust-,ssoot, ,bacteria traces of objectionable gases which will be set out hereinafter.-

I 1 and other. impuritiesvof as. without -i nterfering The construction shown in Figs. 4 to -6 com.- with the :normalfunctioning of allot air-heating prisesa wire mesh basketyformed from a crucisystem of -the-convectionflow type. Also. its caformblank-to provide a base 2i and side panels pacity;for gathering and retaining such impurig 22'bent upwardly and outwardly from the base; ties is large,;andwhen allied to capacity .still con whereby the container is of downwardly tapering tains ample. space .ionpassage ofairtherethrough. rectangular shape, la, the shape of the frustrum The latter-factor is i-mportant because it elim of- .an inverted pyramid. A wire rim '23 bounds in'atesdanger: of; stopping air flowtherethrough the free'edges of the end panels and has a :horiand because it permits consumption of impurities zontal diagonal inwardly projecting U-shaped byslowflcombustion"v which imparts self-cleaning portion 24 at each corner. Arrectangular Wire or renovating properties to thedevice.

mesh panel 25 forms the top of the containerand 45. & Theimpuritycattracting andcollecting propa is of a size smaller than the over-all size of rim ertie's of:-the device resultfrom various. causes. 23 and-large enough to engage each rim corner First.1of .course; iS 'thQiCOIIECtiOII oiparticles and portion 24 when substantially in centered position impurities? entrained-in an air stream by direct onthe container. Coil springs 26 are detachcontactwiththe filaments. The filaments-are; ably hooked at their ends to therim portions 24 characterized by innumerable sharp edges, tips and'intermediate wires of panel 25 and are norand projections which facilitate-both collection mally somewhat tensioned. Metal filaments 2T and retent'io'n' of the particles until=they are in-. of the same character describedabove are contentionally removed by washing. 0i= IShakiI 1g"0lf tai'n'edin the basket and constitute the purifying until they are consumed by slow combustion reg media. sulting from the constantilow ,of warm air Both ofthe constructions illustrated are chararound.them.'--.- In'addition to collection by con-= acterizedby the properties of-flexibility and retact thereis an -attra'ction'of the filler which re,-

silie 'r'ice." Thus, each will fit 'in'any opening of sults fromithe vfact that-the metal filaments'are approximately its shape and which is of a, size neutral andthe; particles in moving airare usually iii-the range between the size; of its base and so slightly chargedum'Ihe: resultant difierence in the over-all size of its rim. For instance, given potentialzcau'ses particle attraction and adhesion: anopening or passage of cross-sectional dimnwhere air :flow 'is 1 ins a path through the ,filler sions equal to the basket circumference at some which normallywould-not result-in contact ofthe intermediate level thereof, the basket can be particles' with.th filaments.-

' i =11," pressed and fitted completely therein. In other as Another factor is the result of the well known words, the individual wall panels thereof will natural ailinityof wfinely divi'ded iron',"aluminum shift inwardly, accommodated by the spring charand other metals which are relatively high in the acter of the U-shaped rim portions betweenpanelectromotive force series of-elements, for sulphur. els. Hence the device conforms to and yieldingly and sulphur compounds such 'as sulphur dioxide; wedges itself in the opening or passage. "The When the metal filaments have a light'coatof filaments of the purifying medium ar so loosely oxi e s" on above. his" affinity i compacted that they offer no resistance to such creasedbe'caus'e the-oxide acts'asa catalyst- Sulcompression, and their arrangement and spacing phur dioxide is commonly'present in air andthe is not altered to any substantial extent incident action' of-heat on'='the;impur'ities fofsai'r ina hot thereto-.- It will also be apparentthat a given air heatingsystem releases fumesef sulphur:

assume compounds at an accelerated'rate. Such fumes are injurious to health and household furnishings such as silverware, and, consequently, theirrremovalf-rom the air is important.

Still another factor is a physico-chemical .action in adsorbing carbon mn0Xide, of which small traces commonly occur in hot air heating systems. This adsorption results from the nature of the filaments and particularly by virtue of the oxide coating thereofmentioned above.

One of the properties of the device which is particularly noteworthy is its ability to sterilize the air and remove bacteria. The bacteria are caught and held by the metal filaments in the manner mentioned above. When bacteria are so caught and retained they cannot remain alive or active because of the unfavorable environment which exists in the purifying media. Consequently, they are consumed and eliminated quickly and at a rate faster than the self-consumption of other impurities as described above. This property has been confirmed by carefully conducted scientific tests and actual bacteria counts in comparison procedures Where all conditions except the presence or absence of the air purifier have been controlled and similar.

It will be understood that, while the construction illustrated and described herein is preferred, the invention may be embodied in other forms. For example, the basket or container may be formed from sheet material of either metallic or non-metallic character which possesses the properties of flexibility and at least a measure of resilience, if the same is provided with apertures of such size, spacing and arrangement that its resistance to flow of air therethrough by convection is small. Preferably, the resistance to air flow should not materially exceed the resistance of the wire mesh construction described above. The particular shape and size of the container may vary in a wide range to meet conditions encountered in use and to make it applicable to the largest range of sizes and shapes of openings and passages which is possible. The sectional character of the side wall may be departed from,

as by making the same continuous. However, in such cases, the portions adjacent to the rim insets should likewise be folded inwardly to avoid rigidity and facilitate reforming to satisfy conditions encountered in use. In particular, compressibility to fit an opening of small size and enlargement to increase the taper of the container for solid fitting in larger openings are essential. Also, it is feasible to provide a carrier of U-shape having a base and only two side walls, or to provide a support only with means to hold it in place with the receiving duct serving to confine the purifying media supported thereon. The purifying media may also be made from non-ferrous filaments as long as a metal which is relatively high in the electromotive force series of elements is selected. The properties of resilience, very loose arrangement and thin or fine thickness of the filaments of the order described above, should obtain in any metal selected.

I claim:

1. In an air purifier adapted to be positioned in a duct, an apertured resilient carrier for purifying media comprising a base and spaced side panels and inwardly projecting yielding members connecting the marginal portions of adjacent panels spaced from said base.

2. In an air purifier adapted to be positioned in a duct, an apertured resilient carrier for purifying media comprising a base and spaced side :8 panels, inwardly projecting bendable -mem'bers connecting marginal portions of .adjacent'vpanels spaced from said base, .a cover for-said carrier, and means for yieldingly positioning saidcover against the bott0in of1said projecting members.

3. In an air purifieradapted to be positioned in a duct, a carrier forpurifying media comprisin a wire-mesh bask t h v n .a .bot ma spaced inclined side panels, and aretainfir paced above and Substantially.paralleLtosaid bottom for connecting said panels and including resilient inwardly projecting portions between adjacent panels.

4. In an air purifier adapted to be positioned in a duct, a carrier for purifying media comprising a wire mesh basket having a bottom and spaced inclined side panels, and a wire rim secured to the upper ends of said panels and having resilient U-shaped portions between adjacent panels projecting inwardly and partially across the mouth of the basket.

5. In an air purifier adapted to be positioned in a duct, a carrier for purifying media comprising a wire mesh basket having a bottom and spaced inclined side panels, and a wire rim secured to the upper ends of said panels and having resilient U-shaped inwardly projecting portions between said panels, and a wire mesh cover smaller than the upper end of said basket bearing on said media and underlying and yieldingly suspended from said inwardly projecting rim portions.

6. In an air purifier adapted to be positioned in a duct, a carrier for purifying media comprising a wire mesh basket having a bottom and spaced inclined side panels, and a wire rim secured to the upper ends of said panels and having resilient U-shaped inwardly projecting portions between said panels, a wire mesh cover smaller than the upper end of said basket underlying said inwardly projecting rim portions, and spring means urging said cover upwardly against said projecting rim portions.

7. In an air purifier adapted to be positioned in a duct, a carrier for purifying media comprising a wire mesh basket having a bottom and spaced inclined side panels, and a wire rim secured to the upper ends of said panels and having resilient U-shaped inwardly projecting portions between said panels, a wire mesh cover smaller than the upper end of said basket underlying said projecting rim portions, and tensioned coil springs detachably connected at their ends to said cover and to the upper end of said basket to urge said cover upwardly against said rim projections.

8. An air purifier comprising a container having a base and inclined side panels formed of apertured flexible material presenting a low resistance to flow of air therethrough, said side panels being spaced apart at adjacent edges thereof and interconnected by flexible means positioned within the outline of the container, and a filler of loosely packed flexible intertwined metal filaments uniformly distributed in said container to present a low resistance to low speed flow of air therethrough.

9. An air purifier comprising an apertured flexible container having a base and a plurality of outwardly inclined side panels interconnected at their upper free ends by flexible means projecting inwardly between panels and accommodating changes in the positions of said panels, and a filler of loosely packed interlaced metal filaments of thicknesses in the range between .005 inch and 7 .02 inchuniformly distributed in said container, Number said container and filler presenting resistance of 1,560,790 a very low order to low speed flow of air through 1,574,718. 1,728,140

a passage which it 'spans.

PASQUALE M. PIRCHIO. 5 1,739,372 1,758,881

REFERENCES CITED ''The following references are of record in the Number file Of thlS patent. m 623,254

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 718,591 Young Jan. 13, 1903 Name Date Jordahl Nov. 10, 1925 Sulzbach Feb. 26, 1928 Steuer Sept. 10, 1929 Pirchio Dec. 10, 1929 Berkholz May 13, 1930 FOREIGN PATENTS Country Date France June 21, 1927 

